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Harry Potter and the Four Guardians

Chapter Nineteen: Matters of the Heart

By: Elf

Trunks was grinning. He couldn't help it, but there was a smug grin on his face. He raised his Ki as he rushed toward the huge, hulking troll.

His keen Sayan senses told him that it rank of rot and other fowl stenches. The thing also seemed dull-witted and surprised to see this streak of a person coming toward him. The same person who had easily stopped his blow.

He debated on throwing some ki blasts or just beating it to death. He knew that he was going to kill it and its friend, but how he was going to kill it was the real question. Right now beating it senseless seemed to bring more satisfaction even though the ki blast would be quicker.

His grin blossomed into a smile as he shouted, "Look at me, damn you!"

The thing turned its hideous face toward him, its dark eyes widening in surprise as it tried to bring its club up. Trunks chuckled to himself as he plowed right through the club, shattering it into a thousand splinters, and plowed into the thing's head. He felt flesh and bone give as he continued.

He wasn't even at an eighth of his strength, but he was strong enough to plow right through its skull.

Blood and thicker fluids splattered him in a hot rush as the troll collapsed to the ground. Trunks turned around in mid flight and wiped the blood and grey matter off of his face with a grin. From his vantage point he could see the goblins trying to drag away Duo, Ginny pulling Forest off the branch she was empaled on, and Harry's green eyes wide with shock. The other troll bellowed and rushed at Trunks.

Trunks floated perfectly still and let the club descend upon him. It exploded and the troll's eyes widened in fear. Trunks wagged his finger at the thing disapprovingly and whispered, "Not good enough."

He smiled as he threw a roundhouse into its solar plexus and then a punch to its massive gut. The thing cried out and grunted as blood poured from the thing's mouth. Its eyes fluttered to the back of its head as its body spasmed uncontrollably as Trunks held his fist in the fleshy mass. He could still hear its heart beat as it choked on its own blood.

"Enough," he whispered as he sent a savage chop to its neck, finally killing it. Its body crashed to the ground and sent Harry and Sirius running. Trunks landed and tried to wipe the blood off of his face but only succeeded in smearing it all over himself.

Harry shouted, "Duo, the goblins!"

"Right," Trunks replied and was airborne again.

He swooped down on them. Duo should've been able to get away from only a handful. Something's not right here, he thought as he looked down. He noticed the uneven rising and falling of Duo's chest and the sheen of sweat on his face. He smelled something sharp and acidic waffling from his shoulder along with the coppery smell of Duo's blood, and he knew that Duo had been poisoned.

He pointed his hand at the goblins and shouted wordlessly as he shot all but one with a ki blast. The last one cried out in some language that Trunks couldn't understand and ran off. Duo fell to the ground among the piles of smoldering ashes. Trunks landed and gently lifted Duo into his arms.

He noticed that Duo's skin was burning hot and that his energy was spiking sporadically. Trunks shouted, "Help!"

Within moments, the vampire was there, landing in front of Trunks. Trunks shifted uncomfortably. Part of it was the fact that Forest was so damned attractive and carried herself like a warrior, but it was mostly because she had an uncanny resemblance to Android 18. It was more than superficial because Forest was much taller than the cyborg, but they had similar facial structures and similar personalities.

She bent her golden head over Duo and gently touched his bleeding shoulder. She murmured, "He yanked the arrow out, damn."

Harry, Ginny, and Sirius quickly bounded behind her, all three humans out of breath and the worse for wear, especially Harry. Ginny cried, "Is he still alive?"

The vampire's face was etched with worry as she bent down to sniff at Duo's wound. Trunks stiffened protectively and cradled Duo closer to his own body. Duo gave a tiny cry and tossed fretfully.

Harry asked, "What's wrong with him?"

Forest turned to Sirius, her indigo eyes very wide in her pale face. Trunks admitted that she looked very human and vulnerable at that moment. Her voice shook as she said, "Sirius, maybe you should have a look."

As Sirius drew closer, Trunks felt several other powers approaching. He recognized the silvery flair of Dumbledore as well as McGonagall, Hermione, Ron, the quiet, yet strikingly powerful presence of Flitwick, as well as a couple that he didn't recognize. Sirius howled, "Over here!" He pointed his wand in the air and it shot out green sparks.

Then Sirius started looking at Duo's shoulder. Harry joined him and asked, "What is it?"

"Poison, a very dangerous poison," Sirius answered gravely as a look of anger crossed his face.

******

"You imbecile!" Malfoy roared as he flung a wine bottle at the goblin. The creature nimbly dodged it as it shattered against the stone wall behind it. Malfoy shouted, "You stinking piece of filth! You couldn't even bring me one boy!"

Snape watched as the goblin stood to its full height and replied, "You don't understand, human. The Scythe Barer was easy enough to bring down with the Inenakact, but we did not expect Sirius Black to be with the vampire at the time nor the fact that Harry Potter had grown so powerful."

Snape felt like he had a cold bucket of water dumped over his head. Inenakact was Gobblegook for "Dark Stillness" and the name of a very dangerous poison, a poison that could kill if not used properly. A poison that only five wizards in Europe could brew the antidote to, and he was one of those five wizards.

"You used what?" Snape growled as he whirled upon the goblin as if he was a disobedient student.

"Inenakact," the goblin answered with a shrug.

Snape advanced upon the creature and sneered, "You could have killed the boy." He was drawing his wand without realizing it. He wanted to hurt the goblin . . . If Duo's . . . He wouldn't let himself finish the thought. He wouldn't think that. He'd go back to Hogwarts to see Duo there, calling him, "Prof" or by his first name, laughing at him for thinking that something could actually kill him.

Malfoy's ice glittered like hard chips of glaciers as he stated, "Yes, Severus is right. The boy is useless to us dead. You have failed me, Snipshot. You know the price for failure."

Snipshot, a credit to his race, drew his crossbow and growled, "I do not fear you, human. You are harmless without your wand. You were the one who asked for our aid and payed us your gold. You should have better prepared for this. The two trolls were nothing to the demon with the purple hair."

Briefs, Snape thought with relief. If Trunks and Hotaru had shown up then Duo was most likely live and well. He felt his stiff shoulders relax in inches when in a dark storm a familiar black cloaked figure appeared.

Snape tensed up as he looked into Lord Voldemort's ruby colored eyes.

******

"Inenakact," Dumbledore said with a frown as he sniffed Duo's wound himself. Harry looked at his friend, who seemed so weak lying in Trunks' arms like that. Ginny was chewing on her knuckles as her eyes welled up with tears. She kept whispering that this was her fault and she should have been able to save Duo or take the arrow herself.

Without realizing it, Harry wrapped an arm around the tiny redhead and hugged her close. Hermione was clutching Ron in the same way. She managed, "The goblin poison? Isn't that fatal?"

Harry stiffened as Ginny started to sob. Not Duo, it isn't right. He wanted to scream at the unfairness of it all. It wasn't right and he asked, "Isn't there an antidote?"

Sirius shook his head and sighed, "There are only five wizards in Europe who could brew it. Three of which are locked up in Azkaban and have long since gone insane, one who's a Death Eater, and the other . . ."

"Yes, the other?" Harry asked hopefully as he studied his godfather.

Dumbledore sighed and answered, "Is Severus, Harry. We don't know where he's at now and there's no way that we can reach him."

Forest said, "I could look for him. I could fly around or ask any of the other vampires that are loyal to me to find him."

Sirius snorted, "That'll take too long and you wouldn't survive if you got into Voldemort's inner circle."

Forest stiffened and whirled on him. She snapped, "I can take care of myself, thank you very much. I'm not some weak woman. I can draw faster than Doc Holiday could ever dream, I can shoot a fly off a dragon's ass at two hundred feet."

"Your gun isn't going to save you against a Burning Charm," Sirius retorted fiercely at her.

Dumbledore calmly stepped between them and said, "Arguing to cover up such an obvious attraction will not solve this. We'll take him to Madam Pomfry to look at. Poppy could devise something to buy us some time."

"I could find him," Trunks spoke up, his blue eyes practically glowing in his blood coated face.

McGonagall cried, "Headmaster, you can't be serious to let this boy go off to find Severus himself!"

"I'm not some boy, Professor," Trunks replied fiercely, "I'm the son of the Sayan Prince. I've been fighting since I could walk. This is just some other monster for me to kill."

McGonagall said, "You do not know what you're saying. You don't know the Dark Lord!"

"I'm not going to go around cowering in fear over some guy with a wand! I've dealt with androids that destroyed whole cities just for kicks! I've been killed by a monster created by science just because he knew that my death would hurt the person that could kill him the most as well as my father!" Trunks shouted.

Harry looked around at all the anger and arguing that was going on. Forest and Sirius had gotten into it again. Sirius' face was starting to turn red as Forest started to smirk evilly at him. Ginny had stopped crying to watch as well. Flitwick was trying to stop each argument, but failing miserably.

Ron whispered, "Bloody hell, they're going to kill each other."

"Harry, Duo's going to be dead before they stop," Hermione said.

Harry sighed and looked up at Dumbledore. Dumbledore seemed lost in thought as the arguments continued to grow more heated by the moment, drawing out almost painfully.

Dumbledore sighed and said, "Harry, if I'm remembering correctly, Hotaru has the power to heal."

"She does?" Harry asked hopefully.

Dumbledore nodded and asked, "Could you fetch her for me and take her to the hospital wing?"

Harry nodded as Dumbledore looked at Ginny then Ron and Hermione. He said, "Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger, could you be so kind to make sure that Ginny has a cup of tea and some scones. She seems like she's in a bit of a shock and could use the comfort."

Harry regretfully let Ginny go as Hermione and Ron both wrapped an arm around the smaller girl. Dumbledore then proceeded to clear his throat. He waited a few heart beats as he watched the auguring parties.

Trunks stopped yelling at McGonagall and turned to look at Dumbledore. Duo's head lolled in his arms, the braid draped across Trunks' arm. Sirius stopped shouting at Forest and looked very young in his bewilderment, Harry realized. Forest calmly stood there as if nothing had happened.

Dumbledore said, "Minerva, could you take Ron, Hermione, and Ginny back to their House? Professor Flitwick could you help Trunks take Duo to the Hospital Wing and Madam Pomfry? I'm sure that she would like your help with this case."

Flitwick looked up at Trunks like he knew the boy didn't need any help to take Duo to Madam Pomfry. Forest and Sirius looked at each other then back at Dumbledore. Forest asked, "What about us, Albus?"

"Well, I suggest that you do a round around the grounds, Forest and Sirius, I want you to look for any magical devices that could be used to spy on someone. This attack was well planned and I want to know who planned it," Dumbledore answered.

Dumbledore grinned at Harry's Firebolt and said, "I suggest that you get Hotaru to the Hospital Wing as fast as you can, Harry."

Harry nodded as he mounted his broom. He answered, "Right." He flew off to the Gryffindor Tower, hoping that he could get in through the window.

******

"I don't see the Scythe Barer here, Lucius," Voldemort his coldly, his ruby eyes gleaming like hot coals. He took in the sight of the goblin and then his eyes lingered on Snape. Snape returned the glance thoughtfully, but his mind was racing.

He was afraid, terrified actually. Bravery wasn't one of his strong points. It was logic less and dangerous to him. He wanted to Apparate far away, maybe back to his lair in Scotland where he could brood in quiet.

Malfoy, to his family's credit, straitened out his linen robes and stated, "I slight setback, My Lord, I assure you."

"You know the penalty for failure," Voldemort drawled as he looked around the vast Malfoy Manner. Then a cold smile split across his angular features as he said, "Then, I'd lose your vast resources, but I'm not letting this go unpunished."

Snape forced himself to watch as Voldemort drew out his wand, point it at Malfoy, and said, "Crucio."

Malfoy cringed and shook with pain as he fell to his knees. Snape watched with faked distain as Malfoy screamed in pain. Then, it was over and the man knelt on the ground, still shaking with the aftermaths of the curse.

He whispered, "Master, I'm sorry that I failed you, please . . ."

"Enough sniveling, Malfoy, get up to your feet," Voldemort sneered as he turned to look at Snape, "And let us see if our spy could tell us anything."

Snape stiffened and carefully pushed his hair back from his eyes. He debated on what to tell Voldemort, on to tell him a selected few truthful facts or make an elaborate lie up. He decided that the selected facts would be the best direction. Then he held himself to his full height and forced himself to look Voldemort strait into the eyes.

"Severus," Voldemort said with a smile.

Snape replied, "Potter is learning combat from Forest, who Dumbledore hired to protect the castle. As documented, she has become quite fond of both Potter and the Scythe Barer and has taken them under her wing so to speak. From my understanding, Potter is learning very quickly and becoming very dangerous."

"Someone needs to pound a wooden stake through that undead bitch's heart," Malfoy sneered as he rose to his feet.

Voldemort gave a fond smile as he mused, "Easier said than done. Forest is very tricky and has the Devil's Luck. She is very thorough and clever. Sirius Black is there, correct?"

"Yes, he is. He's helping protecting Potter and his anger's given him power as well, and the fact he still wants Pertigrew's blood," Snape answered carefully.

Voldemort laughed, "Snape, you're always so cautious. You make sure that you never step out of line for your own well-being. An admirable quality, as your intelligence is."

"What are your plans?" Malfoy asked.

Voldemort smiled and answered, "I have a set of eyes watching the castle at night. The same set that you used. I will strike at my own leisure, but Snape, I need you to watch the boy's progress. If any hint of his power appears, I must know immediately."

"Of course, Dark One," Snape replied with a bow. His fist clinched in his robes, secretly reaching for his wand. He was angry and being careless. He couldn't make a move right now, he had to help Dumbledore protect the castle and find the other pair of eyes.

And he had to go back and make sure that Duo was all right, that the poison didn't harm him.

Voldemort Disapparated with a violent pop, leaving Lucius Malfoy alone with him. Malfoy said, "I want you to protect my son when the attack comes. I fear that Voldemort will not care about any of the student's lives."

Snape froze, stunned for a moment. He looked at Malfoy's anxious face and wide, grey eyes. He nodded briskly and said, "Of course, after all, he'd make an excellent Death Eater. I must go, Lucius."

As he turned to leave, Malfoy called out, "Severus?"

"Yes," he answered, turning back to look at the other wizard.

Malfoy asked, "What was the message you burned onto William's face that night?"

Snape smiled and answered, "You wouldn't understand it."

Still, the potion he had created had burned the words The God of Death is back from Hell into Billy's face.

Maybe sooner than we think, Snape thought as he left the grounds.

******

Hotaru's face was pressed into her Arithromancy book. She had long since given up on the problem and fallen asleep with her face in the book. Until she felt someone touching her shoulder.

She gave a startled cry and grabbed the wrist attached to the hand. Then she twisted her body and used the leverage she had to flip them on the table. A blur of black landed with a muffled groan.

She stood up and gripped her transformation wand. A pair of bright green eyes looked up at her not framed by glasses looked up for her. She relaxed when Harry Potter fumbled for his glasses and slid them back on his face.

"Harry?" she asked as she tucked the transformation wand back into her pocket.

Harry shoved his raven hair from his face and looked up at her with those startling green eyes. He looked very angry yet very concerned about something. She knew that the anger was probably directed at her. Almost everyone was angry at her from being with Draco, to going with Trunks to the Yule Ball, and the distance she had been trying to put between herself and Duo Maxwell, so she was use to it, but it seemed strange to have Harry Potter looking at her like that.

"Duo needs your help," he answered in a breathless voice as he gathered his broomstick from the ground.

She gasped as a million ideas and images of Duo lying in pain or crying in anguish formed in her mind. She asked, "What happened?"

"Voldemort sent goblins to capture him and they poisoned him," Harry answered briskly he mounted his broom.

She swallowed and knew that Snape wasn't here to make an antidote for the potion. She didn't want to see Duo hurt but she was afraid to heal him. She didn't want to open herself up to him like that; she was afraid to. She was afraid of what he would see.

Harry glared and snapped, "Duo's going to die if you don't help him. It's bad enough that you have him moaping around the halls as well as him being what he is. You don't have to do that you know. Duo's not some terrible freak, true, he's a little nutters, but anyone who lived his life would be."

Hotaru licked her lips and asked, "Where is he?"

"I'll take you to him," he replied as he gestured to the back of his broom. She mounted it behind him as her heart started to pound. Harry was the best flyer at Hogwarts, but he was also a bit reckless when it came to his broom. It was obvious to watch when he played Quidditch.

She gripped the stick tightly as he took off. She closed her eyes and held on for life as she felt the broom fall and shoot up at different intervals. She was shaking and Harry shouted, "Relax, you're throwing the broom off!"

"How can I relax when you fly like a baka!" she snapped back at him as she felt her body move along with the broom.

Harry flew faster and Hotaru cried out as they headed toward the Hospital Ward. They flew into the window, where Dumbledore was talking to Madam Pomfry. Then, lying on one of the beds in a tangle of sweaty blankets was Duo Maxwell, tossing and turning.

Hotaru scrambled off of the broom and rushed to his side. His gamine features were pale and gaunt and his left shoulder was covered in blood. She moved his sweaty hair from his face as she watched him moan and toss painfully as the poison worked its way through is body. She trembled in anger as she watched him.

"Hotaru, can you fix him?" Trunks' unsure voice asked behind her.

She snapped, "I need to be alone with him, now."

"Young lady, I don't know who you are," Madam Pomfry began.

Dumbledore kindly interrupted, "It's all right, Poppy. Hotaru knows what she's doing."

"Everyone, go," Hotaru barked. She knew that Trunks would drag them all out if she demanded it. Harry was about to interject when Trunks gave him a glare.

Hotaru looked at Harry, the Boy Hero, the good friend, the paladin, and knew that he wanted a reassurance. She knew that he felt guilty that Duo had gotten hurt like this. She whispered, "I can help him."

Within moments they were alone. Hotaru took his hand and leaned close to him. She whispered, "Duo, Duo, please, it's Hotaru, can you hear me?"

His violet eyes opened, glazed over with pain as he looked her over. "Hotaru?" he rasped.

She squeezed his hand and offered him a smile. She answered, "Hai, it's me."

"Are you going to apologize that you can't help me and run away?" he asked dizzily.

She shook her head and answered, "No, not now, not ever again."

"Stay with me," Duo pleaded, looking very vulnerable, "I'm a little scared."

Hotaru leaned over him and gently placed her hand over his burning shoulder. She promised, "I will, don't worry."

"Thank you," Duo murmured before he passed out again.

Hotaru gritted her teeth with determination as she poured her energy into the wound. She concentrated on it and sent the power out through his body, searching for the poison. She could feel it like a dark sludge polluting his blood. With some effort, she diluted it so that his own body could force it out without a problem. Then, she closed up the arrow wound as well as the other small bruises he had suffered in the battle.

She gave a tiny gasp as she pulled away. She fell into the chair, completely drained. She leaned over and touched him. She was pleased to feel that he was cooling off and his sleep was peaceful. Then she nodded off herself.

******

"I won't let you see him," Madam Pomfry stated as she crossed her arms and looked at the four Gryffindors clustering around her, "It's bad enough that the girl won't leave his side, but I won't have you four waking him up."

Ginny protested, "But, Madam Pomfry, we're his friends and . . ."

"You'll wear him out," she replied stiffly.

Harry sighed, knowing how to deal with her after enough times in her care, and said, "Could you just tell us how he's doing?"

"His fever's all but gone, but he's in a deep sleep right now," Madam Pomfry answered, sounding a bit nicer.

Hermione held out Hotaru's Arithromancy book and asked, "Can I give this to Hotaru really quick? She'll get very behind if I don't."

Madam Pomfry sighed and gave them a bewildered sort of smile. Hermione brightened and said, "Thank you!"

The four rushed past her and Ron sighed, "Bugger, it amazes me every time we get by her."

Harry grinned and replied, "I'm glad that you did. It gets lonely up here."

Hotaru appeared out of nowhere. She looked exhausted and there were circles under her dark eyes. She even looked paler than normal. She gave them a wan smile as Hermione handed her books to her.

Hermione asked, "How are you?"

"Exhausted, but I'm not leaving his side till he wakes up," Hotaru answered with determination.

Ginny blurted out, "Is he going to be okay?"

Ron snorted, "Come off of it, Ginny." He looked at Hotaru and explained, "She thinks that this is all of her fault. Tell her she's being nutters."

"It wasn't your fault, Ginny," Harry explained as he reached out and squeezed her shoulder. Seeing her like this was doing something odd to him. Seeing her turn toward him and squeezing his hand back made his heart start to beat oddly. He liked her hand on his and he liked the way her shoulder felt beneath his fingers. And he liked the dazzling smile she was sending him and the way her amber eyes shone when they met his.

Hotaru's pretty face scrunched up as she snapped, "It wasn't your fault, Ginny, it was Voldemort's."

"Still, isn't sending goblins after him a little drastic?" Hermione pondered, "I mean, he's only one teenage boy who's good at potions."

Ron pointed out, "But Forest is here." His ears turned pink as he said her name. He quickly added at Hermione's glare, "As well as Trunks, and Trunks killed two trolls with his bare hands."

Harry couldn't get the image of Trunks flying through a troll's head out of his mind. He kept seeing Trunks' blood splattered face every time he looked at the boy. He didn't want to know what Trunks could do when he had all of his power. It had to be frightening.

Hotaru shrugged and clutched the book to her chest. She said, "Well, Hermione, could you tell my teachers that I'm sick or something."

"Lie to them?" Hermione asked, sounding a little disapproving yet understanding at the same time.

Ron chirped, "We could tell them that you had a rampaging Hipogriff run over you."

Hotaru gave him one of her sad smiles as she retreated off to where Duo was probably lying.

They walked out together and Ron asked, "Is it just me, or is she scary?"

"She's a very nice girl when you get to know her," Hermione huffed defensively.

Ginny chuckled, "Yeah, Duo's crazy about her."

Harry shrugged and reasoned, "She has a lot of responsibility and power on her shoulders. You'd be a little queer if you had the power to destroy the world and recreate it just as it was before without the strife that you destroyed it for."

He didn't add the fact that she had also taken up for Sirius and surprised him by staying with Duo. He had to remember that she was Sailor Saturn, even more powerful than Sailor Pluto, who was very intense in her own right. Harry had come to the conclusion that Hotaru was probably afraid to get close to Duo. Even though Duo'll probably change that.

"Huna?" Ron asked, looking very blank and puzzled.

Ginny pointed out, "She's one of Duo's Four Guardians, you know."

"That's what Sailor Saturn does, Ron, just like Pluto controls time and makes sure that no one changes it," Hermione sighed and rolled her eyes.

As they rounded the hall, Harry saw a very solemn Cho looking at him. He looked at Ginny and knew what he had to do. He grinned at his two best friends and the little redhead and said, "You guys go ahead, I'll catch up to you later."

He reached Cho and a few uncomfortable moments later she said, "Harry, we need to talk."

******

He watched as the entity known as Mistress Nine cackled as she took over the girl's body.

Hotaru screamed silently in her own mind, but she was helpless.

Still, there was a way out, a way to help Usagi and Rini, all she had to do was accept the responsibility.

Duo awoke slowly. He was aware that he wasn't in his own bed and that the room was fairly bright. He groaned as he sat up, making sure to cover his eyes. "Too bright," he grumbled as he flexed his sore shoulder.

Then last night's events came back at him at full force. There was the goblin attack, the arrow, blacking out, then burning pain as something poisoned his body at a frightful rate, and then Hotaru. Hotaru had helped him, healed him somehow.

His eyes slowly became adjusted to the light and he managed to look over. He found himself grinning stupidly as he did. He watched as Hotaru was resting her head on a textbook, her black hair fanning around her pale face. He moved closer and watched her breath, enjoying the movements.

She looked young and vulnerable like that. Her eyelashes made ink dark crescents on her creamy pale skin and her very kissable mouth was parted ever so slightly as she breathed. Her long, graceful fingers were curled slightly around her book and supporting her head. Duo smiled as he gently tucked a stray lock out of her face.

He got up and waited for the ground to stop spinning around him. As soon as he was able to move, he walked over to Hotaru's chair. He gently lifted her up, careful not to disturb her. She made a tiny groan as he softly laid her down on the bed.

He took the chair and watched her. He picked up her book and studied it. He recognized Arithromancy from Hermione. She'd work on it in between his Transfiguration drills. He'd always wanted to ask about it, but she'd get mad and probably scold that he needed to work on his Transfiguration.

He flipped through the first page and smiled at the familiar number patterns. I know this, he thought, not magically perhaps, but mathematically. Despite Heero's claims, he wasn't an idiot, in fact, one had to be fairly good with numbers if they wanted to repair things. Adding his secret love of design and engineering, Duo was very good at math from Trig to calculus.

Looking through the old book was like talking to an old friend. I wonder if I can get my classes switched, he thought as he studied the pages. I'd be better at this than that Divination crap.

******

Harry looked at Cho. She had a fading bruise on her cheek and a bandage on her left hand. She used the injured hand to push stray locks of her raven hair from her sloe eyes as she avoided Harry's gaze.

She asked, "Why didn't you tell me that you were in that sort of trouble?"

Harry blinked and shifted uncomfortably. He hadn't expected that question and he wasn't ready for it. He was more prepared for her yelling at him and insulting him than that one question.

He pushed his glasses closer to his eyes and tried to answer her question. "I didn't want you to be in danger."

"Harry, I'm older than you, I can take care of myself," Cho replied icily as she stared at him.

Harry crossed his arms and snapped, "Cedric died because of me, remember? Because I'm Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, or rather the Boy Who Lived While Everyone Else Dies."

"Don't you dare bring Cedric into this," she cried as her eyes watered. She furiously blinked back tears as she snapped, "I'm tired of everyone telling me that they're sorry that Cedric died! Being sorry isn't going to bring him back and neither is being reckless!"

Harry replied, "I'm not being reckless."

"Yes you are. No sane wizard would try to face a hoard of goblins like that. Any sane wizard would have ran," Cho chided.

Harry sighed, "I couldn't. They would have gone after you too."

"You don't need to be heroic like that," Cho spat at him furiously.

Harry looked down at her, at her pretty golden face and long raven hair. She had ran while Ginny had stayed by his side the whole time. Ginny was willing to fight beside him no matter what.

She chewed on the lips that he had kissed many times before as he said, "Cho, I didn't ask for this."

"I know you didn't Harry. And neither do I," she replied sadly as tears fell down her face, "I wanted to help you, but I couldn't."

Harry gave her a small grin as he reached out and brushed the tears from her face. He whispered, "All I wanted was you to like me for me."

"And the Real Harry Potter's greater than the myth. I can't take it, Harry," she sighed as she gently removed his hand from her face.

He smiled as he said, "It's okay, Cho. I'm quite the handful I'm told."

She laughed and shakily replied, "The American's been rubbing off on you."

"I told him not to do that," Harry snorted, hoping to get her to laugh. She did as she brushed the tears from her eyes.

She asked, "So, you're not upset?"

"Yeah, I am. I still like you Cho," Harry answered with a wan smile, "And I don't want to stop talking to you."

She smiled and replied, "Don't hate me, Harry, for doing this."

"Of course not, Cho. We'll still be friends, right?" Harry asked as he studied her.

Her face brightened in relief, making her dark eyes sparkle. She answered, "Of course."

"And there's still Quidditch," he added with a nod.

Her eyes sparkled challengingly as she retorted, "I still have to beat you in our match."

"We'll see," he replied as he gave her one last smile. That was easier than I thought, he thought happily as she waved at him and told him good bye. She started to walk down the corridor and he watched as she was joined by her group of friends.

He realized that it wouldn't work between them last night. They were too different. Still, he felt as if he had a weight lifted off of his shoulders. He started to whistle as he walked down the hall.

******

Hotaru opened her eyes slowly. For a moment she had forgotten where she was and snuggled back into the warm covers of her bed. Bed? She jerked up, realizing she had fallen asleep watching Duo on her text book.

Duo was watching her coyly, his violet eyes dark and intense, almost brooding except there was heat in his gaze. He grinned and said, "Hello, Sleeping Beauty."

She blushed as she looked at the bed then where Duo was sitting at the chair. Lying beside him was some parchment, his wand, and her Arithromancy book. Duo watched her with amusement.

She climbed out of bed and asked, "How long have you been there?"

He looked at his watch. The watch from his dimension with all of it's high gadgetry, and shrugged. He flippantly answered, "About four hours."

"Oh, Kami, and you'd let me sleep the whole time?" she sighed as she sat back on the bed.

His grin was warm as he leaned over to her. His violet eyes sparkled as his soft chestnut bangs fell into his gamine features. She blinked at the sheer beauty of his features, how he didn't seem to be real. Except he wasn't like the God of Death, more like a faerie prince consorting with a mortal. And she was that mortal.

He confessed, "I liked watching you."

Her cheeks flamed as she stammered, "You should have woken me up."

"I couldn't. Not after you stayed with me and helped me," he replied intensely as he reached out and gently took her hand. Her heart started to pound as she looked into his drowning eyes and her breath became unsteady as she grew more nervous than before.

"You wouldn't let me be alone like that and I thank you," he said in perfect Japanese.

Hotaru stammered, "You kept risking your life for others. I couldn't let you be alone like that." She remembered how helpless and afraid he was when he said his plea last night. She knew it had cost Duo for him to say that, to beg that she'd stay with him.

"I'm cursed, Firefly, haven't you seen that?" he snorted as he began to pull away.

She stood up with him and grabbed his hand again. She understood his loneliness and felt it as well. They were looking for the same thing and she had finally found what she was looking for. Duo had found it long before she did, but she was stupid enough to let that get away.

They were connected. She knew that now as she looked into his wondrous eyes. Her heart pounded with the knowledge as they watched each other.

She replied, "Not as cursed as me."

"Mistress Nine wasn't your fault," Duo said intensely.

She smiled as she said, "And Maxwell's Church wasn't yours."

He smiled brightly and asked, "Now what?"

"I'm not sure," she answered with a tiny giggle.

He gently cupped the side of her cheek and she rubbed her face to his hand like a cat. His hand was warm and calloused. She reached out and gently brushed his hair from his face. Then, he bent his head down to hers and kissed her.

She sighed as she wrapped her arms around her and he placed one hand at the nape of her neck while the other pulled her closer. The kiss started gently and sweetly as their lips gently explored another. She wrapped her arms around him tighter when the kiss became charged with a magic all their own. It was dark, sweet, and powerful as their mouths ravaged one another.

The kiss ended with them gasping for air as they looked at each other. Duo's eyes were darkened with lust as he looked her over. He gently growled, "Hotaru." Then they were kissing again, even more furiously than before. She roamed her hands all down the smooth, hard muscles in his back, marveling at the power that he had.

******

Draco Malfoy's heart was breaking. For the longest time he had thought that he hadn't had one that it was something that people like Potter claimed existed, or rather, a Malfoy wouldn't have one. Logic and power were the things that were important, not trivial things like love and friendship.

However, this dark haired slip of a girl had came into his life with her haunted eyes and changed all of that.

He watched as Hotaru kissed the American, Duo Maxwell. He knew the reason that she broke up with him was that braided idiot. The same braided idiot who had jumped on his broomstick and flew after a Kiss (1) of vampires to save her. The brave, braided idiot that made friends wherever he went with his flashing eyes, long hair, and American wit and charm.

The same American boy that his father was after. The same American boy that the Dark Lord was after.

Draco wasn't stupid. Actually, he was far from it. He knew that his father had been interested in Duo Maxwell ever since he had seen him in Flourish and Blots. Then there was the questioning that his father had given him as well as the device to plant on the Quidditch field.

Then he had heard about a Scythe Barer.

He had followed Granger around as the bushy haired girl did research on the subject. He looked at the same books she had and found out some very interesting facts. He had also found out that Granger wasn't just a teacher's pet but actually very intelligent. He was also realizing, after being with Hotaru and having part of her rub off on him, that most of his so-called friends were rather shallow.

Pansy went after any attractive male that grinned at her. Crabbe tortured small animals for his enjoyment while snickering like a fool. Goyle was as dumb as a post. The other Slytherins picked on poor Millicent like there was no tomorrow. Blaise was quiet and withdrawn from the rest of them. Draco had often wondered about the dark-haired girl, but she rarely spoke to any of them and plowed ahead in her best subjects like a dervish.

Still, watching Duo Maxwell kiss Hotaru like the world was ending was sending a killing blow to his heart.

He knew that Hotaru hadn't been happy with him. She was trying to make herself happy with the thought of him, but it hadn't worked. He had seen it in her eyes every time he was with her. Every time she looked at Maxwell. He had even begged her to stay with him, but he had used the wrong tactics. Hotaru was far from superficial he realized.

He stepped away from the Hospital Wing. His father had asked him to check on Maxwell. He knew that Voldemort was after the being known as the Scythe Barer, some poor bloke embodied with the powers of Death herself. He had also read that people with violet eyes usually had something connecting with Death.

He realized that Hotaru had violet eyes.

Oh, hell, he was dealing with Fate now. Something a Malfoy couldn't even change. He silently cursed his father and the dilemma he was in.

What would the son of the Dark Lord do because he didn't want to see the Scythe Barer's soulmate hurt?

That was the dilema that one Draco Malfoy was contemplating right now.

******

"Help me."

Sirius jerked up, pointing his wand at the sound.

"Help me," the hoarse voice whispered again.

Sirius shouted, "I'm coming!" He rushed towards the sound, snow crunching under his boots as he ran. He dodged branches until he heard the plea again. He shouted, "Hold on, I'm coming."

He then saw a chared hand lying limply under a hollow log. Sirius ducked down to see a pair of foggy blue-green eyes watching him from a face that was bright red and blistered from a bad burn. "Illuminos." Sirius held the light down towards the poor person hiding under the hollow log.

Blond hair gleamed in the wand's light and the blackened and blistered red skin of the person hiding benith there. Sirius could smell the burning skin even from there and flinched. He asked, "What happened?"

"Kill me," the man whispered, his blue-green eyes turning fever bright.

Sirius shook his head and took a step back. He pointed his wand at the log and levitated it out of the way. He then reached a hand down and wrapped a hand around the burned man's middle. He was surprised to feel that he was cold and the burns weren't radiating off heat. Then he noticed there was no heartbeat. He checked for a pulse and froze.

"Kill me, I'm the spy for Voldemort," the vampire rasped as he grabbed Sirius' robes.

Sirius shoved the vampire off of him and pointed his wand. He shouted, "Forest!" He couldn't kill a man, vampire or not, in the condition that this one was in.

Forest landed and gasped, "Sean! What happened?"

"Forest, kill me, please!" the vampire begged as he fell into her slender arms. Forest cast a helpless glance to Sirius, who inturn shrugged.

Forest asked, "Why, Sean?"

"Voldemort is using me to watch Hogwarts, I realized it last night," Sean rasped, "You have to protect Harry before he takes control over me again!"

Sirius wondered all the different ways that someone could inlist a vampire in their servace, rather inslave them. Vampires were creatures of free will and immune to most spells unless the caster was a necromancer. Sirius was aware that there was a potion that could drug one into a wizard's servace, but other than that Sirius was stupified.

He said, "Let's go to Dumbledore."

Forest nodded and replied, "Good idea, but he needs blood. He was almost roasted this morning."

"I don't deserve it, lass. Just kill me now!" Sean pleaded as he jerked on her jacket.

"We need to get him to Dumbledore," Sirius replied firmly as he looked at Forest, who's free hand was drifting toward her gun.

Forest stated, "Dumbledore hired me to protect the students. Sean could be a liability."

"Yes and he could also help us discover what Voldemort is planning to do. Violence isn't always the bloody answer," Sirius shouted at her.

Forest glared and shifted Sean's weight so that he could lean on her easier. She hissed, "Fine, but he wants to die. Suicide is almost impossible for vampires."

"He can't die yet," Sirius snapped as he started running out of the Forbidden Forest.

To Be Continued!

(1) Kiss is what a group of vampires are referred to as. I took the liberty from the wonderful Laruell K. Hamilton, one of the best vampire authors who ever lived!

Thanks to Luthorin for starting with this story on FictionAlley then following it to ff.net when I hadn't updated it on Snoggle yet. Hey, pal, I'm sorry if I spelled your screen name.

Yeah, I'm having a bit of trouble writing Sirius right now. I'm sorry if he seems a little OCC.

Oh, if you want to watch a good anime, I highly recommend "Trigun". It's one of the most hilarious things you'll ever watch, then, towards the end it becomes "Cowboy Bebop" serious. It's excellent stuff. Plus, all the characters are likeable, which is really unusual.